Japan Press Weekly

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2022 August 10 - 16 [POLITICS]

JCP Koike: Reshuffled Kishida Cabinet stays same inside

Prime Minister Kishida Fumio on August 10 reshuffled his Cabinet. Although he had said that he would "strictly review" relations with the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification or the Moonies (the former Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, known as the Unification Church), he retained people who have a connection with the Moonies as Cabinet ministers. PM Kishida showed no intent to probe into Moonies-related political ties and left all the "review" to individual Liberal Democratic Party politicians.

Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Koike Akira, asked by the press in the Diet building for a comment on the second Kishida government, pointed out, "As PM Kishida had proclaimed that he would 'maintain the basic outline', the policy itself will remain the same in the reshuffled Cabinet. Except for a change in the Cabinet lineup, nothing will change."

Koike said, "I suppose that PM Kishida wanted to cover up the LDP-Moonies link by reshuffling the Cabinet. However, soon after the new Cabinet was formed, it was again found that several members in the new Cabinet, including Kato Katsunobu (Health, Labor, and Welfare Minister) and Yamagiwa Daishiro (Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization), had had ties with the Moonies.

Koike added, "This indicates that the LDP can no longer find prospective Cabinet members who have no relationship with the Moonies and that the party is cozy with the controversial organization."